


all parts of her heritage

by phinnia



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:08:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23789857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phinnia/pseuds/phinnia
Summary: how a vacuum-dessicated disk of a Ferengi ended up on a Bajoran altar, or Kelda's first visit to the Bajoran temple.  Discussions of spirituality and what happens after death.
Relationships: Kira Nerys/Odo/Quark, Kira Nerys/Quark, Odo/Quark (Star Trek)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 16





	all parts of her heritage

Nerys fiddles with the ring on the sling and takes a step into the station's temple. 

She hasn't been in here for so long.

First there was everything starting with Odo. And then Jadzia dying. Then things starting up with Quark, of all beings in the galaxy. The Pagh-Wraith cult. Then Odo going away. And then Kelda. 

She smiles down at her sleeping daughter, who obediently wakes up and stares into her eyes. Then her daughter puts her fist in her mouth. 

"You think I think too much, don't you." she says softly to Kelda. "You know, I wonder what Captain Sisko would have made of you - no, never mind. He would have _adored_ you. It would have been hard to get him to put you down. It's hard to get either of your fathers to put you down as it is. Well, come on. Let's go to services. You've got your chew-bar-of-latinum Rom sent you last week. You want to meet a Vedek? If you behave for moogie during services, you can meet a Vedek today."

She introduces Kelda to Vedek Naideer, the new station Vedek, after services.

"She has your eyes." The woman says diplomatically.

"And Quark's ears, I know." Nerys smiles. 

"May I hold her?" 

"Of course. Just be careful, she's cutting teeth on the top and she's already got two or three on the bottom."

"So soon? She's not yet three months old."

Nerys nods. "Ferengi cut teeth very early in development."

Vedek Naideer picks up Kelda and holds her close. "Oh, aren't you sweet. May the Prophets bless your path, child. I'm glad that you want her to know about all parts of her heritage." She touches Kelda's ear. "She has a very strong pagh."

"Somehow, I'm not at all surprised."

She goes back to their shared quarters. Quark is teaching Odo to play fizzbin. Nerys is pretty sure he's made this game up.

"Okay, so you have to turn up your second card."

"Why?" 

"Because that's part of the rules." Quark smiles at Nerys. "How were the Prophets? Did Sisko say hi? Did Kelda have an Orb experience? Those things are pretty strange."

"When did _you_ have an Orb experience?" Odo asks suspiciously.

"Zek's fault." 

"You can't blame everything on your stepfather -"

Quark actually screams. "He's _not_ in a contract with Moogie! Not my stepfather! This really was Zek's fault, ask Mahard'hu! He was there!"

"Hmmmph." Odo grumbles, but he does snake an arm around Quark's waist and massages his back a little. 

"Stop that, you sexy, gelatinous distraction."

"Apparently the new Vedek says she has a very strong pagh." Nerys takes Kelda out of the sling and puts her on the floor. She creeps over to her Brunt-toy and starts chewing on its velveteen coat cuff. "I said I wasn't surprised. Do you have an ... altar, or something, Quark?"

"I keep it in the back room of the bar." he shrugs. "I could put it up at home, I suppose."

"Ferengi have religious statues that aren't the Nagal Staff?" Odo chuckles.

"Of course! We pray to the Blessed Exchequer. And there are statues of all the Naguses back to Nagus Gint by the Tower of Commerce in the Great Marketplace. Except Smeet."

"What was wrong with Smeet?" Odo asks curiously.

"They assassinated him while he was in office and buried him with his First Clerk." Quark shivers. "A two-hundred point drop on the Exchange in a single day. They had to stop trading. That never happens. The Exchange never _stops trading_ in the middle of the day."

"That's terrible."

"I know. His remains weren't even sold."

"Wait, wait." Nerys leans forward. "So ... when you die, what happens?"

"Our remains are vacuum-dessicated and sold on the Ferengi Futures Exchange." Quark shrugs. "I have a piece of my father in the floor vault in the bar."

"You have ... a piece of your father in your floor vault."

"A vacuum-dessicated _disk_ of my father, not just some random rotting limb or something. And I didn't want to _lose it_."

"Why don't you put it on your altar?"

Quark looks absolutely appalled, like she'd just suggested he'd give the bar to charity. "We don't do that!"

"So let me put it on mine!"

Quark looks over at her, appraising. "All right. I mean. If you want to."

She swats over his head. "You incredibly dense Ferengi. He's Kelda's grandfather and her namesake. _Of course I want to._ "

"I'll get everything tonight, after the bar closes. I don't want the waiters looking in the vault."

"You mean, you don't want _me_ looking in the vault." Odo says, but he's still got his arm around Quark's lower back.

"I'm a perfectly legitimate businessman! And you love me." 

"Hmmmph." Odo hugs Quark from behind, putting his head on his shoulder. Quark puts his cards on the floor. "Are there rules for this card game? Because I'm convinced this is something you're making up as you go."

Nerys hears the sound of fabric tearing.

"I think she's actually cut another tooth, just sitting there. Let moogie see." She gingerly pokes in Kelda's mouth and pulls out a piece of velveteen cloth. "The one on top just came through. She bit right through Brunt's sleeve."

Odo and Quark start to laugh. 

"I think it's time to start with the mashed up roots."

"What?" Quark looks startled. "No grubs, no beetles?"

"She can have grubs tomorrow. But I am not chewing them, Quark. I'll make them into a sauce and she can have them with the roots."

"Hmmm." Quark muses. "That might be pretty good, actually."

Nerys smiles as she picks Kelda up. "I'll make some extra for you, then."


End file.
